


Bill's a Joker

by plasticineking



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: DIDN'T YOU LOVE BILL?, Fluff and Angst, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-23
Updated: 2016-04-23
Packaged: 2018-06-04 01:47:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,088
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6636037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/plasticineking/pseuds/plasticineking
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bill's latest poorly timed joke hits the Doctor's nerve and he finally sees what's been there, ignored by him from the beginning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bill's a Joker

**Author's Note:**

> Well, I thought Bill was just swell...

** Bill’s a Joker **

* * *

 

“Why do you keep doing that?” The Doctor’s eyebrows were scrunched together, pointing at her face. Bill batted his hand away, _rude_.

“Doing wha’?” her face mirrored his, a confused look plastered there.

“The jokes… the fat Dalek’s you’re mocking it-“

“No I’m not!”

“-you’re not taking it seriously,” he scowled at her, only just catching her words, “you think you’re taking it seriously?”

“Yeah, I bloody well am,” for the first time since he met her the Doctor could _see_ … “I’m takin’ it very seriously that a bloody man in doc martins takes me through time and we stumbled across his _nemesis’s…_ nemisai? I don’t know, I don’t _care_ , they got guns and keep talkin’ about killing us and I make jokes when I’m terrified!”

Well… wasn’t that a development? Because as she finished her tirade at the Doctor, her own expression went shocked; neither of them expected _that_. From the moment they met, Bill was a firework of a person and she hit a spark in the Doctor that had been long dormant. He wasn’t bored any more, he was having fun again…and he realised in all that he got lost in the warning signs. The way she giggles every time the whirring of the TARDIS starts, but her hands cling on like she’s worried for her life (and it hurts him, it hurts that he realises now…god, _she is)._

“Bill…” he let his face get sad, he let her see that he could see her, see her woes and didn’t blame her. He stumbled into her time and for the life of him he couldn’t get back to it. He tried, for the first week, he really did…but he started having fun, he didn’t notice that maybe she wasn’t.

“Don’t, Doctor…it’s fine - it is…” she scuffed her shoe on the side of the TARDIS console, “I don’t know if I’m made for this type of thing…and I really wanted to be.”

Well, he had two options. He could drop her off close to her time (not that that hadn’t been internally debated, but the cons of the fact he couldn’t enter the whole of the 90s for some unknown – he really should check into it – reason meant she’d either be too early or too late) or he could make her see sense.

His sense, which, truthfully was the only sense that mattered to him (and he wasn’t going to bring light to how wrong that was)

“Oh, well…if that’s what you think then, Bill my friend off you go…” He waved at the door, “’cause if you’re not made for this ‘type of thing’ what’s the point? If you’re not made for an adventure then why bother? I mean, you don’t want to find out do you? No! That would be a challenge. You’re scared of failing me? That’s impossible, not a person I met and took with me failed me…well, that’s a lie but none of them were worth mentioning.”

“Oh great, so I’m already forgotten then? Off you go, drop me on some weird planet with overweight murdering tin men and you’ll pick up some other traveller and I’ll be gone from your head?”

He paused, tapping his chin before nodding, “Pretty much.”

“No… I won’t have it!” She stood tall, so brave, this Bill she didn’t even _know_ it, “You promised you’d get me home. You said so yourself. You’d find a way. You’re stuck with me until you do.”

“I don’t know, sure you won’t get scared and make a few poorly timed jokes?”

“I know I will and you’re gonna keep your old mouth shut and take it,” her chin jutted out and she folded her arms, staring at him through dark eyes. The fear was still there, but boy didn’t it pale in comparison to the fire.

Everyone had that fire, that passion in them, he saw it in the most unlikely of people and he saw it in Bill the moment she saved his life.

“Okay then, but don’t you expect me to laugh,” he pointed at her again, pulling his hand away before hers could hit him. She turned around and faced the console.

“Whatever, I saw you laughin’ earlier,” he had laughed at something she said, a delighted little giggle at the back of his throat that left him almost as quickly (it was foreign to him, that type of easy happiness and he still didn’t believe he deserved it), “I’ll make you laugh again before I get home.”

He passed a smile at her, flicking switches, and frown as her hands still clung to the console tightly. He longed for the day when she would take it in her stride, longed for the day that she looked at him with just the flames and none of the dread – the glee at being on that adventure. His smile turned sad and she returned it.

“Don’t worry, Doc… I never liked flyin’ much, think it should be for birds and planes with everyone ‘cept for me on them.”

He wanted to correct her, they weren’t _flying_ they were traveling, pushing through time and space, but he imagined it must feel like a similar unease to flying in an airplane, even if only because you know you’re not on solid ground. He nodded a little.

“You’ll get used to it,” his words were a statement, there was no question there at all. He was stating a fact. _Bill would get used to it._ There will come a day when she will crave it.

But still, despite that, despite his surety he kept his eyes on hers ignoring the slight tension in her brow, and she nodded, “Yeah… I’ll get used to it, I suppose.”

She didn’t sound as sure as he did. But she sounded hopeful. And truthfully that was all the Doctor needed, flashing her a smile he pulled a leaver down.

“Now, how do you feel about seeing the world of 2017?”

“I reckon not a lot will ‘ave changed,” she shrugged, but there was that building curiosity and wonder that he _loved_ to see in his companions.

Laughing he swept to the door, opening it with a flourish, “Oh so much has changed, young Bill…just you wait to see who is the latest American President.”

Rolling her eyes, allowed a little jump to her step as she went to the door, praying that there would come a time when the unease would leave her.

**Author's Note:**

> I kinda decided that I wanted Bill - before she becomes a character that we actually know more about - to be an almost reluctant companion (see: Tegan, but more into it). I wanted her jokes to be a little bit of a bravado ... sort of Donna-style. I had to get this out. I hope you enjoy!


End file.
